Hands of the Ripper (1971) @ EOFFTV

Country of Origin: UK
Year of Production: 1971
Running Times: 85 mins
Format: Eastmancolor 35mm
Ratio:
Sound:

PRODUCTION
Production Companies: Hammer Films / Rank Organisation
Producer: Aida Young
Production Manager: Christopher Sutton

PHOTOGRAPHY
Director of Photography: Kenneth Talbot
Labs: Rank Film Laboratories

SOUND
Sound Recording: Kevin Sutton
Sound Editor: Frank Goulding
Dubbing Mixer: Ken Barker

MAKE UP AND COSTUMES
Make Up Supervisor: Bunty Phillips
Hair Supervisor: Pat McDermott
Wardrobe Supervisor: Rosemary Burrows
Wardrobe Mistress: Eileen Sullivan

DESIGN AND SET CONSTRUCTION
Art Director: Roy Stannard
Construction Manager: Arthur Banks

CAST
Eric Porter (Dr John Pritchard)
Angharad Rees (Anna)
Jane Merrow (Laura)
Keith Bell (Michael Pritchard)
Derek Godfrey (Dysart)
Dora Bryan (Mrs Golding)
Marjorie Rhodes (Mrs Bryant)
Lynda Barron (Long Liz)
Marjie Lawrence (Dolly)
Margaret Rawlings (Madame Bullard)
Elizabeth MacLennan (Mrs Wilson)
Barry Lowe (Mr Wilson)
A.J. Brown (Reverend Anderson)
April Wilding (Catherine)
Anne Clune (1st cell whore)
Vicki Woolf (2nd cell whore)
Katya Wyeth (1st pub whore)
Beulah Hughes (2nd pub whore)
Tallulah Miller (3rd pub whore)
Peter Munt (peasant)
Philip Ryan (Police Constable)
Molly Weir (maid)
Charles Lamb (guard)
Norman Bird (Police Inspector)
Ann Way (seamstress (uncredited))

PLOT SUMMARY

As a baby, Anna sees her mother brutally murdered by her father, Jack the Ripper. Years later, as a young woman, she is haunted by the last memory of her father, of his embrace as light from his knife reflected on her face. Now, whenever these conditions are recreated, she becomes wildly homicidal. She's taken in by Freudian psychologist Dr Pritchard who recognises her father's inheritance but fails to recognise the trigger for her murderous behaviour.

CAPSULE REVIEW

Despite some heavy handed Freudian sub texts, Hands of the Ripper is one of the very best of the late period Hammers, a glorious romp through through a colourful and beautifully photographed Victorian London. An excellent performance from Rees as the tortured Anna gives the film an emotional depth that most of its contemporaries could only dream of. Regrettably, Sasdy never really matched his work on Hands of the Ripper, his subsequent films wasting his considerable talent for suspense and imaginative use of a talented cast on unworthy projects.

AVAILABILITY

UK
Theatrical Distributor: Rank Film Distributors Limited
Video Distributors: Rank; Missing In Action

USA
Rating: R
For an R rating in the US, the murders of Long Liz and the housemaid were trimmed, notably the second stab to the latter.

TIMELINE

1971
January
25: UK - principal photography begins

March
5: UK - principal photography begins

POSTER TAGS

A new terror-filled X film

ALTERNATIVE TITLES

Gli artigli dello squartatore - Italian title
De blodiga händerna - Swedish title
Las manos del destripador - Spanish title

REFERENCES

MAGAZINES

Filmfacts vol.15 no.12 (1972) pp.277-278 (USA)
reprinted reviews

The House that Hammer Built no.8 (April 1998) pp.414-416 (UK)
illustrated credits, synopsis, review

Monthly Film Bulletin vol.38 no.453 (October 1971) pp.196-197 (UK)
credits, synopsis, review

English Gothic (2nd edition) by Jonathan Rigby pp.183-184
illustrated credits, review

The Hammer Story by Marcus Hearn and Alan Barnespp.146-147
illustrated article, review


	SYNOPSIS \| REVIEW \| PRODUCTION NOTES \| TRIVIA \| PRESS \| QUOTES \| KIM NEWMAN ARCHIVE \| MEDIA
	Hands of the Ripper (1971) Country of Origin: UK Year of Production: 1971 Running Times: 85 mins Format: Eastmancolor 35mm Ratio: Sound: CREDITS PRODUCTION Production Companies: Hammer Films / Rank Organisation Producer: Aida Young Production Manager: Christopher Sutton SCRIPT Script: L.W. Davidson Short Story: Edward Spencer Shew DIRECTION Director: Peter Sasdy Assistant Director: Ariel Levy PHOTOGRAPHY Director of Photography: Kenneth Talbot Labs: Rank Film Laboratories EDITING AND POST PRODUCTION Editor: Christopher Barnes MUSIC Music: Christopher Gunning Musical Supervisor: Philip Martell SOUND Sound Recording: Kevin Sutton Sound Editor: Frank Goulding Dubbing Mixer: Ken Barker MAKE UP AND COSTUMES Make Up Supervisor: Bunty Phillips Hair Supervisor: Pat McDermott Wardrobe Supervisor: Rosemary Burrows Wardrobe Mistress: Eileen Sullivan SPECIAL MAKE UP EFFECTS Special Make Up Effects: Roy Ashton (uncredited) SPECIAL EFFECTS Special Effects: Cliff Culley DESIGN AND SET CONSTRUCTION Art Director: Roy Stannard Construction Manager: Arthur Banks MISCELLANEOUS Continuity: Gladys Goldsmith LOCATIONS Studio: Pinewood Studios, Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire, England, UK CAST Eric Porter (Dr John Pritchard) Angharad Rees (Anna) Jane Merrow (Laura) Keith Bell (Michael Pritchard) Derek Godfrey (Dysart) Dora Bryan (Mrs Golding) Marjorie Rhodes (Mrs Bryant) Lynda Barron (Long Liz) Marjie Lawrence (Dolly) Margaret Rawlings (Madame Bullard) Elizabeth MacLennan (Mrs Wilson) Barry Lowe (Mr Wilson) A.J. Brown (Reverend Anderson) April Wilding (Catherine) Anne Clune (1st cell whore) Vicki Woolf (2nd cell whore) Katya Wyeth (1st pub whore) Beulah Hughes (2nd pub whore) Tallulah Miller (3rd pub whore) Peter Munt (peasant) Philip Ryan (Police Constable) Molly Weir (maid) Charles Lamb (guard) Norman Bird (Police Inspector) Ann Way (seamstress (uncredited)) PLOT SUMMARY As a baby, Anna sees her mother brutally murdered by her father, Jack the Ripper. Years later, as a young woman, she is haunted by the last memory of her father, of his embrace as light from his knife reflected on her face. Now, whenever these conditions are recreated, she becomes wildly homicidal. She's taken in by Freudian psychologist Dr Pritchard who recognises her father's inheritance but fails to recognise the trigger for her murderous behaviour. CAPSULE REVIEW Despite some heavy handed Freudian sub texts, Hands of the Ripper is one of the very best of the late period Hammers, a glorious romp through through a colourful and beautifully photographed Victorian London. An excellent performance from Rees as the tortured Anna gives the film an emotional depth that most of its contemporaries could only dream of. Regrettably, Sasdy never really matched his work on Hands of the Ripper, his subsequent films wasting his considerable talent for suspense and imaginative use of a talented cast on unworthy projects. AVAILABILITY UK Theatrical Distributor: Rank Film Distributors Limited Video Distributors: Rank; Missing In Action USA Theatrical Distributor: Universal Pictures Video Distributor: VidAmerica CENSORSHIP HISTORY Australia Rating: M Finland Rating: banned in 1971 Norway Rating: 18 Sweden Rating: 15 UK Rating: X; 18 USA Rating: R For an R rating in the US, the murders of Long Liz and the housemaid were trimmed, notably the second stab to the latter. TIMELINE 1971 January 25: UK - principal photography begins March 5: UK - principal photography begins May 6: UK - rated X by the BBFC (with cuts, for theatrical release) October 3: UK - theatrical release November 22: Sweden - theatrical release 1972 July Day Unknown: USA - theatrical release 1987 June 24: UK - television broadcast (on Thames Television) 1993 December 17: UK - television broadcast (on BBC1) 1997 September 27: UK - television broadcast (on BBC1) 2000 September 2: UK - television broadcast (on Channel Four) POSTER TAGS A new terror-filled X film ALTERNATIVE TITLES Gli artigli dello squartatore - Italian title De blodiga händerna - Swedish title Las manos del destripador - Spanish title REFERENCES MAGAZINES Filmfacts vol.15 no.12 (1972) pp.277-278 (USA) reprinted reviews Films and Filming vol.18 no.4 (January 1972) p.61 (UK) credits, review Halls of Horror no.27 p.32 (UK) note Hollywood Reporter vol.215 no.28 (26 March 1971) p.14 (USA) credits The House that Hammer Built no.8 (April 1998) pp.414-416 (UK) illustrated credits, synopsis, review Kine Weekly no.3305 (13 February 1971) p.71 (UK) credits Monthly Film Bulletin vol.38 no.453 (October 1971) pp.196-197 (UK) credits, synopsis, review Starburst vol.9 no.11 (July 1986) pp.18-21 (UK) article Today's Cinema no.9877 (2 February 1971) p.8 (UK) credits Today's Cinema no.9879 (9 February 1971) pp.8-9 (UK) credits Today's Cinema no.9946 (8 October 1971) p.25 (UK) review Variety 13 October 1971 p.16 credits, review Video Junkie no.1 p.21 (USA) review BOOKS English Gothic (2nd edition) by Jonathan Rigby pp.183-184 illustrated credits, review The Hammer Story by Marcus Hearn and Alan Barnespp.146-147 illustrated article, review Reference Guide to Fantastic Films by Walt Lee p.182 credits Ten Years of Terror pp.106-108 illustrated credits, review (by Tim Greaves) KEYWORDS blindness, jack the ripper, london, psychologists, serial killers Last Updated: 1 January, 2009